Storm brings heavy showers, few problems to North County

NORTH COUNTY - The largest storm yet this season moved through
North County Monday, bringing landslide warnings, flooding, high
surf and snow to the region, but few major problems were reported,
authorities said.

The storm dropped about twice as much rain and snow on the area
as previous storms had this season, bringing much-needed relief to
the parched region, National Weather Service forecaster Robert
Balfour said.

Rainfall totals throughout North County by 5:30 p.m. included
0.30 inches at the Oceanside airport, 0.37 inches in Vista, 0.56 at
the Carlsbad airport, 0.78 inches in Del Mar, 0.93 inches in
Escondido, 1.50 inches at the Ramona fire station, 1.13 inches in
Rancho Bernardo and 1.52 inches in Poway. Daytime temperatures
ranged from the 40s to 60s.

The rain also boosted the seasonal rainfall total to 2.93 inches
at Lindbergh Field, which is still 3.86 inches less than the annual
average to this point in the season of 6.79, meteorologist Steve
Vanderburg said. Before Monday's storm, the total was only 2.21
inches.

The rain, which should clear out by today, will be followed by a
second storm which is expected to move through the area Thursday
and Friday, Balfour said. That storm system is expected to be
colder, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s, so snow could fall as
low as 3,500 feet, Balfour said.

"They will recharge ground water and increase growth a lot more.
There will be more green grass, which will temporarily help the
fire danger."

Larry Craig, a dispatcher for the California Department of
Forestry, said time will tell how much the rain affects the
landscape now covered in dead brush from January's frost.

"It depends on if the rain is countywide or hit-or-miss," Craig
said. "The brush will absorb the rain and lower fire danger for a
while, but the frost killed a lot of brush, so we'll see."

The storm system, which formed when a subtropical southwestern
system merged with a cold front from the Gulf of Alaska, sprinkled
showers and spots of heavy rain as it moved through the county,
forecasters said.

The storm also dropped snow on mountains as low as 4,000 feet,
including Palomar Mountain, areas south of Julian and near Pine
Valley, east of El Cajon, Balfour said.

Part of South Grade Road on Palomar Mountain was closed for a
time because of the snow, Balfour said.

Warnings were also issued for thunderstorms, small hail and
funnel clouds, but none of those conditions ever materialized over
North County, authorities said.

Forecasters issued an urban and small flood advisory through
late Monday morning, but no flooding was reported on North County
roads, the California Highway Patrol reported.

However, Monday's showers were enough to submerge much of
Leucadia Roadside Park in silty, ankle-deep water. A crew of
firefighters and a powerful pump were at the ready late Monday
morning at the notorious low spot at Leucadia Boulevard. The city
pumps runoff that collects at the park over a hill and onto
Beacon's Beach.

In Escondido, homeowners headed to RCP Block & Brick, a
Mission Avenue business that sells sand bags, an employee said.

"It's been kind of slow today, but we have sold some," Jaime
Rodriguez said. "As soon as it starts sprinkling, (residents) start
getting them."

Forecasters also warned of high surf, which could reach 5 to 7
feet with peaks of 9 feet. A high surf advisory is in effect until
2 p.m. today.

At the beach in Carlsbad Monday afternoon, poorly-formed 3 to 4
foot waves lapped at the shore, and no flooding or serious rescues
were reported, lifeguard Alec Leslie said.

"It's very quiet here at the beach," except for the occasional
surfer, he said.

Lifeguards worked to remove lobster traps that washed toward the
beach, becoming a hazard for surfers, but the traps are
"constantly" a problem and an "ongoing (effort) this time of year,"
Leslie said.

On roads throughout San Diego County, the CHP reported 257
crashes between midnight and 5 p.m., compared to the 50 to 75
crashes normally seen on days without rain.

Among the more significant incidents, a 50-foot big rig
fishtailed and overturned on Highway 76 near Bonsall on Monday
morning, blocking the roadway in both directions at Gird Road for
about three hours. The truck's driver was uninjured, but the crash
also caused a minor hazardous materials spill when diesel fuel
leaked onto the road, said John Buchanan, spokesman for the North
County Fire Protection District.

Dan Beeson, a Valley Center fire engineer, said area
firefighters were working Monday morning to check spots on streets
near Lilac and Coal Grade roads that routinely flood in wet weather
but found no significant flooding.

More than two feet of water can accumulate in some areas, and
people who try to cross the water can be swept away, Beeson said.
Firefighters last performed such a water rescue in 2003, he
said.

The rainfall also prompted the county Department of
Environmental Health to issue a general advisory for coastal waters
because of urban runoff that can increase levels of bacteria in the
ocean and bays. Such advisories generally warn people to stay out
of the water for at least 72 hours after the last rainfall.

Runoff, which especially accumulates near storm drains, creeks,
rivers and lagoons, may contain bacteria from sources including
animal waste, soil and decomposing vegetation.